


It Started In A Traffic Jam

by Maeglin_Surion



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: #TheyDeserveBetter, Alternate Universe - Bookstore, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Charles Xavier has a Ph.D in Adorable, Charles is a Bookseller, Cherik Inktober Challenge 2019, Declarations Of Love, Erik Has Feelings, Erik Lehnsherr Has a Crush, Fluff, Fluff and Romance, Halloween, Love, M/M, Puppies, Smitten Erik, Soft Charles, soft erik
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2020-11-15 08:28:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 10,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20863229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maeglin_Surion/pseuds/Maeglin_Surion
Summary: ...and it was a fucking bad day. But sometimes things get worse before they get better.Here is a fiction for the They Deserve Better Cherik Inktober Challenge 2019 because we love them hurted, but we love them happy, too, don't we?





	1. Puppies

**Author's Note:**

> English is not my first language, so I am sorry if there is any mistake remaining.

There was almost half an hour that Erik was stuck in this fucking traffic jam.

Cars were everywhere.

Idiots were everywhere.

He had no more cigarettes and he was late, and he was very angry.

It was a fucking bad day.

Being on the left lane was a bad idea, anyway. He slowed down and came back to the right. Then, slowly, a huge and classy right-hand-drive vintage car came to his side. A Bentley, maybe, or a Rolls. From the early Twenties. The driver, a young and laughing long-haired guy, was trying to keep four fluffy puppies on the back seat. They were climbing on the leather seats and on him. He even had one of them on his head.

One of the windows were open just enough for Erik to hear him laugh and begging: “Please, go back to the crate. No, don’t eat this. Sit, now. Please… Oh fuck,” he said, and in one second, all the pups were back in their place and sat quietly without him doing anything. Erik blinked. The man sighed and turned his head, looking straight to him, and then he started to laugh. It was a frank and strong laugh, like those who make you cry.

Erik grinned and laughed a bit when the unknown shrugged helplessly and gone as the traffic jam resorbed.

He watched him disappear in the traffic.

It was not such a bad day, after all.


	2. Kitten

It has been raining cats and dogs all day and many people had taken refuge in the bookshop. Most of them did not know what to do there and stood idle. The bookseller was understanding but he already innocently got rid of four who had proved to be profoundly mutophobic.

He just had resolved an umpteenth "Er, I'm lookin' for a book but I don't remember the cover or the title but at some point, there's a cat that speaks. Oh, and it’s a black one! Does it help you?" that a tall man hastily entered the bookshop. He had his head down, his hands holding his collar, and he was completely soaked. He took a deep breath and straightened, discovering where he was. His eyes widened and his mouth opened. “Wow,” he murmured.

In fact, the bookshop was really big and stunning. The ceiling was dark blue like a night sky full of stars and constellations. Some nebulae were glooming in it. Above Fantasy section, there was a big dragon that seemed to come out of the wall and crawl on the shelves. His long tail wrapped around the shelf end. And the Halloween special area was tastefully decorated. Erik had never seen anything like this.

“Hello,” said a voice behind him. “May I help you?” Erik turned around and found himself face to the young man from the traffic jam. He seemed to recognize him too, because he smiled immediately. “Oh,” he muttered. “We meet once again.”

“Er, yes,” Erik answered. The man had beautiful eyes, like a deep blue sky, and his lips were almost too red. He wore a dark blue polo shirt with a small constellation over his name. Charles. What a beautiful name for this man. Erik smiled back to him. “No puppies this time?” he teased.

Charles laughed and winced. “No, not today. Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, yes, I’m fine. I… just forgot my umbrella.” Erik replied. “Can I… stay for a while?”

“Of course,” Charles said. “Just be careful not to wet the books. You can stay on the carpet.”

“That’s kind of you,” Erik thanked him. Charles gave him a gentle smile that warmed him. They stared at each other for a while, then something very small and very sharp pricked into Erik's chest. He jumped. He had completely forgotten _that_. Slowly, he spread the sides of his jacket and revealed a small ruffled and blue-eyed head. “Ow, poor thing,” Charles began, holding a finger to the nose of the kitten. “It’s soaked.”

“Yeah,” Erik added. He felt stupid and ridiculous, holding a kitten in distress in his jacket and being even more wet than it because he could not shelter from the rain. “Just found it near a bin. Abandoned, I guess.”

“Poor little thing”, Charles repeated. Erik nodded. “I wanted to take it to the vet before going back to work, but it was raining so hard that I rushed into the first open shop.”

Charles seemed to think. Finally, he said: “Wait, I’ll give you something.” He disappeared behind a door and returned with an umbrella. “Take it. Just come back some day to return it and, maybe, buy a book or two. What do you think?” He gave Erik a wink.

“Yes, thank you. I’ll be back, for sure. Soon.” Erik answered, somewhat hypnotized.

“Great.” Charles said while smiling.

“Great.” Erik repeated. The kitten began to meow, and Erik remembered he had to go back to work–and bring this wet thing to the vet. He smiled at Charles and turned to the door. “See you next time, then?”

“Yes,” Charles answered. “Sure. Take care,” he added with a nod to the kitten. And before feeling even more stupid, Erik came out.


	3. Sunset

The morning had been so long, and Charles was starting to have a headache. He had had it up to here with people looking for a book with a blue cover with a yellow whale on it, which inevitably had nothing to do with what they were actually looking for. He smiled politely to a young woman for whom he had just found an edition of Balzac and get rescued by a familiar voice.

“Sorry,” said the voice. “Can you help me?”

Charles turned and smiled at Erik immediately. It had been a while since he was coming to the bookshop and he was always lighting up Charles' day. “Of course. What are you looking for, this time?” Charles asked.

“Well,” Erik began. Actually, he did not have a clue what he wanted―apart from seeing Charles and spending time with him. He glanced around and spotted a spaceship. “Maybe you can advise me. I’d like to read some science-fiction, but I don’t know where to start,” he muttered.

Charles smiled at him oddly. Erik could not tell if Charles wanted to laugh because he thought he was ridiculous or if he was charmed by him. That was really awkward.

“Sure,” Charles answered. “Come on.” He took Erik to the Science-Fiction section, and after asking him if he had ever read something like that (the answer was “no”), Charles went into a rather lengthy explanation of the qualities of the _Hyperion_ series. Erik was totally fascinated―much more by Charles than by Dan Simmons' books. So fascinated that, as always, he decided to buy the book recommended by Charles.

Then, as Charles prepared to cash his payment, he looked up at him and smiled teasingly. “You know,” he began, playing absently with Erik's card. “You don’t have to buy me a book every time you come. I’m pleased to see you as well if you don’t.”

Erik blushed and Charles smiled even more. “Tell me,” he added. “Have you read _all_ the books you've bought here since this rainy day?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No. No, I didn’t,” Erik answered, embarrassed. “So,” Charles began. “Maybe we can just hang out together?” His smile was brighter, and his eyes were shining. Erik’s heart missed a beat. “Yeah?” he said. He vaguely pulled himself together and smiled back to Charles. “Yes, we can do that.”

“What about tonight?” Charles asked, still smiling.

“It will be perfect,” Erik replied.

“Wonderful,” Charles muttered. “I close the bookstore at half-past six. We can meet just after it in front of the Sunset Bar. They make very good milkshakes,” he winked at him.

“Sunset Bar,” Erik repeated. “Yes, good idea. I’ll be waiting for you there.”

“Excellent.”

The way Charles smiled at him was delicious. It warmed his heart and gave him goose bumps. He could not believe he will hang out with Charles tonight. When he went out, he was in a daze.

When he was gone, Raven came whispering in her brother's ear: “Seriously, Charles, how many books did he buy since he come?”

“Twenty-eight,” Charles replied. “Literally one by day.”

“Gosh,” his sister said. “He's crazy about you.”

Charles laughed and winked at her. “I hope so!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are several kinds of sunsets... :D


	4. Beach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for rereading, Elizabeth.
> 
> _*Throwing glitter*_  
It go well with this chapter :')

Charles stood on the pier near the lighthouse, his coat pulled tightly around himself as he shivered. To warm him up, Erik put his arm around his shoulders. He put his cheek on Charles's head and let himself be tickled by his fresh hair. He inhaled deeply. It smelt of sandalwood and sea spray and… much more than that. Charles's hair was the best smell he could ever smell.

_Gosh_, he thought, _that's unreal_.

Actually, it was extremely _real_. In Erik's mind, the memories were very clear.

A few days before, he went out with Charles for the first time. That had been a wonderful date: they had delicious milkshakes and thanks to Charles' anecdotes and Erik's tons of books, they laughed a lot. They smiled a lot. They brushed each other’s hand, leg or foot. Timidly first, more earnestly afterwards. And finally, they had kissed. Or, to be more precise, Charles kissed Erik. It was a warm and tender kiss, full of love and gentleness. The first of many more to come.

After that, they dined in a beautiful restaurant they barely saw, only having eyes for each other. They kept laughing and smiling, caressing each other with their fingertips. Then, Erik broached the subject of mutations, so they got lost in passionate conversations about it, after which neither had told the other that they were mutants. It lasted until the restaurant closed and the waiter begged them to go-out-_now_-please-thank-you_._

And then the best thing of the night (according to Erik): they came back at his place and made love. That was wonderful. That was gentle. That was… _everything_ was more perfect than he could have hoped. Even waking up had been fantastic.

When Charles's phone alarm had sounded, he had stopped it by snapping his fingers then Erik said: “How the fuck did you do that?”. So, Charles had laughed and confessed being a mutant. A telepath, actually (with some other _funny_ skills). Erik then realised that many of his thoughts had to be heard by Charles when he came to see him at the bookshop. Charles had heard that _too_ and smiled at him and snuggled in the arms of his lover, telling him that that was both cute and awkward, but especially cute.

They kissed deeply and made love a second time.

They both arrived late to work.

And that was wonderful.

Now, they were there, together, embraced and happy. Next, they will get a hot and creamy drink with marshmallows, then they will go for a walk on the wet, compacted beach.

And that will be wonderful.

Erik kissed the top of Charles's head. He knew he was smiling, so he smiled too.

Above them, the sky was beautiful, full of red, pink, orange, dark blue and golden rays. The sea shone like a sun. As their eyes did.


	5. Road trip

Erik was delighted to hear that Charles was also a biker and seeing him in black leather for the first time was like a slap. His boyfriend was so damn sexy. Erik also smiled insanely while discovering that Charles was driving a Triumph Bonneville Speedmaster. What a perfect choice.

On a whim, they decided to go on road trip for the weekend. Charles entrusted his four boisterous puppies to his sister, Raven. As for the kitten found by Erik, it turned out to be a Maine Coon. Erik named it Hades because of its colours that reminded of grey-blue flames. He left Hades to his mother, Edie, begging her not to force-feed it.

And they left.

Erik’s bike was a sleek BMW and Charles found him fucking sexy on it. So, he told him.

“Thank you, love,” Erik thought. Feeling Charles' mind caressing his was an exhilarating sensation. Even when the only thoughts that Charles wanted to send him was "What a nice piece of ass you have". Erik smiled. His man was just behind him on the road. They had crossed a few passes with beautiful turns, and they began to feel thirsty. “Let’s have a drink,” Erik said, and they had.

They went for a drink in a beautiful chalet with a panoramic view of the valley.

They drove in the forest and along the rivers.

Only them, their bikes and the sound of the engines.

They felt free.

They fully enjoyed the time they spent together.

Erik thought he should ask Charles to live with him. Not at home or at Charles's (which he had never seen), but at _their_ home.

Charles thought it might be a bit early to suggest that Erik could live with him, right? But… but he was the man of his life, so he decided to do it.

Before that he wanted to tell him how rich he was because he did not want Erik to discover it by accident.

Returning from their two-day road trip, Charles took Erik to his mansion.

Erik was impressed, but he was also happy.

He was happy that Charles opened the doors of his world to him.

He told him how happy he was.

He loved him all the night.

And in the morning, they were attacked by a bunch of fluffy puppies that climbed on the bed while yapping. The puppies chased them down to the ground floor where they found a note from Raven saying: “They chewed ALL my tights and I have dog hair EVERYWHERE. Never ask me to look after them again. NEVER”.

“Oh,” Erik said. “Seems your sister’s upset.”


	6. Kiss

There was nothing better than that. Dawdling in bed all the morning, only kissing and cuddling until their stomachs remind them that they had to eat.

Erik prepared to get up, gently pushing Charles to his side. “Erik… stay,” Charles murmured, his head stuck between two cushions. “I’m hungry, schatz. Aren’t you?” Erik replied while leaning to kiss him on the shoulder. Charles’ head straightened fast. An eyebrow rose.

“I’m really _hungry_, too,” he said but not at all in the same tone as Erik did, so Erik laughed. “Look, I’ve an idea… what if,” he began but Charles cut him short: “Yes. God, yes!”

Telepathy was definitely a wonderful thing. “I was _sure_ it’d please you,” Erik added, smiling naughtily.

“You know me too well,” Charles replied.

“Obviously,” Erik said, winking. “Stay. I’ll deal with everything.”

“You’re a love,” Charles murmured while stretching. He was fully naked, so Erik took a few moments to admire him, caressing his skin with his eyes. Charles let him do it. Erik looking at him lovingly was one of his best pleasures. “Kiss me,” he said and Erik obeyed immediately, lying down against him.

Charles wrapped him in his legs.

Erik's hands caressed Charles's tangled hair.

Charles' hands massaged Erik's firm shoulders.

They loved kissing like this, skin-to-skin, nipping playfully at each other’s lips.

The gentle caress of their tongues while the kiss was getting slower was purely delightful.

There was nothing better.

Well… almost.


	7. Cuddles

“Charles, there’s something behind you,” Raven said. She had given effect to her voice so well that he felt like he was in a horror movie. He turned around and saw Erik standing behind the bookshop window, staring at him like a psychopath.

“Oh, good Lord,” Charles muttered. Erik’s smile widened. There, like that, he reminded Charles of a shark. A great white shark or a tiger shark, something full of teeth and really hungry like that. Charles raised an eyebrow and returned to work, ignoring him. This was not a good time.

Erik did not give up. He entered the bookshop and followed Charles methodically in it, staying away from him but close enough for his boyfriend to feel his presence without having to use his telepathy, just looking at the back of his neck with a predatory look. So much that he made three clients flee, which raised Charles's tension a notch. He turned to Erik and looked angrily at him.

“You’re not helping me, Erik,” he reproached him.

“Of course, I am. I totally am. It’s almost noon. I’m kidnapping you.”

Charles stared at him. Erik’s smile widened again. “Yes, schatz, you’re coming with me. Right now. The boss didn’t tell you?”

“I’m the boss, Erik,” Charles replied. He noticed a lady of a certain age who always came to see him for endless requests. It was always extremely painful because he knew immediately what she wanted but even if he waved the book in front of her eyes, she invariably said "no, but wait, I need to explain to you that..." and she explained to him. Every time. Despite himself, Charles grumbled.

Raven appeared then near him. “Leave it to me, Charles. Go eat,” she said.

“And what about the pups? No hard feelings?” he asked suspiciously.

“Oh, don’t tell me about these hairy monsters. You'll return me the favour. Soon,” she assured.

“Right,” Erik began. “Since everything is settled, you come with me. Now.” He took Charles by the hips and dragged him. Charles just had enough time to grab his jacket that he found himself outside.

The weather was chilly, but it was not raining. Charles wrapped himself in his scarf. Immediately, Erik raised Charles' chin and kissed him tenderly. The kiss spread a gentle warmth in them and relaxed a bit Charles's nerves. Then Erik embraced Charles and hugged him, rocking him softly.

“Feeling better?” he asked.

“Yes,” Charles answered. “Yes completely.”


	8. Fireplace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I'm late... I hope you'll enjoy yourself!

Erik had never had a fireplace; he had never lived in an apartment luxurious enough to have one (not to mention a mansion). That was one of the reasons he liked sitting next to Charles's. The other reason and the most important was that spending time with Charles (and their fluffy family) was the best thing that was. They liked being just there both without doing anything particular.

Charles often read one of the innumerable books in the library, Hades on his lap and the great Argos asleep at his feet. Now that it was a little older, Argos looked more and more like a Great Pyrenees and it was set to become a very large dog. It was totally in love with Charles, even more than other puppies. Jack, the crossbred corgi, was lying on its back on the carpet in front of the fireplace, its four paws extended, and a smile painted on its upside-down fluffy face.

Erik was lying on the couch, stuck between Gary and Iron. Both dogs looked like twins as they were similar even though Gary was a crossbreed German Shepherd and Iron looked like a silver Husky. And, above all, they seemed to assume that Erik was the third of their siblings.

Sometimes there was no need for more.


	9. Blanket

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the lateness. I literally had no life last week c:

For once, the puppies and the kitten had been quieted all the evening. So, Charles and Erik had tenderly made love on the couch, ignoring the movie they had awaited with impatience all the week. Now, relaxed and happy, they were cuddling under the flannelette blanket.

“I love you, Charles,” Erik murmured. And he believed in it.

“I love you, too, love,” Charles replied while kissing him on the neck. He let out a moan as Erik drew him closer and nestled his naked body against himself. Then Charles smiled and ruffled Erik’s hair. They began to kiss slowly and deeply, the heat rising to their cheeks, and were about to make love again. Near them, the completely ignored TV automatically went into standby mode. Its artificial light turned off with it, leaving the room lit only by the moon.

Erik opened his tights and Charles began to kiss him wherever he could, gently nipping the tight skin. Charles slipped slowly against him and disappeared gradually under the blanket. His handsome lover quivered with pleasure and desire as Charles’ head reached his crotch.

Erik closed his eyes and let his fingers play with Charles's hair, surrendered himself to Charles’ caresses and kisses. He moaned when he felt the soft tongue of his lover against his skin. 

Hidden under the blanket, Charles heard it. He also heard a small muffled sound followed by a high-pitched yap. Before he could understand what was happening, something soft hit him on the left buttock. Immediately, the blanket was pulled so quickly that it simply disappeared. A big dog then jumped on the back of Charles, happy to have found them.

“Aaah! No, NO! Argos! OW!” Charles and Erik screamed. Argos jumped from the couch and started to lick Erik’s arm while wagging its tail. “Fuck, Argos, why?” Erik complained. “No, stop! Don’t lick the face!”

In an instant, all the other dogs (including the cat who thought he was one too) rushed towards them, jumped everywhere, barking, and ran off like crazy. Charles and Erik blinked.

“What the fuck just happened?” Charles shouted.

“Yeah, and why?” Erik added. “We were about to make love! You silly dog!” but the dogs were already far. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” Charles said. “I just… well. He cut off our playing time.”

“Totally. Again. Show me your back.”

Charles obeyed. He had several sets of red scratches on it. Erik relaxed by noting that it was superficial. “You’re having an affair, don't lie to me. I can see the scratches,” he muttered, looking falsely threatening. Charles laughed. “Yeah, I thought so they were _too_ quiet.”


	10. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> POV Erik.

I thought I was dreaming.

I thought nothing of what was happening really happened.

I thought I was not good enough for you.

I thought I was going to wake up and understand that all of this was just a wonderful dream that would leave me with a gaping wound.

Yet it was _real_.

_Everything_ was real.

Now, I am here with you, Charles. You are sleeping next to me; you have blind trust in me. I can feel your mind sailing on an ocean of dreams. Dreams of love. You dream of us. I know it. I feel it. It is wonderful.

You are mine, Charles, and I am yours.

I love you so, my darling.

I will never tell you enough.

You have made my life complete, love.

Now, all my dreams fulfil.

I am so happy, so proud being with you.

Thank you, Charles.

For everything.


	11. Holidays

Since they met, the road trip was their first holidays but looked more like an outing. This time, Charles and Erik had planned their trip from A to Z and especially they wanted to bring their doggy family with them. Charles’ vintage Bentley was not large enough, neither Erik’s Volvo. Then, they rented a big car so that everyone can fit in.

The departure itself took more than an hour, the time for everyone being well tied and safe.

The trip was not excessively long, but the many breaks to allow the dogs to stretch their paws and do their business lengthened it considerably.

They arrived in the late morning at the chalet they had booked. It was on a slope in front of a beautiful lake. All around the chalet was a dense and ancient forest. The site being completely fenced, dogs could run everywhere without their masters worrying. As for Hades, to the extent that he thought he was a dog, he never tried to behave like a cat: he only climbed if the dogs did and where they did. So, he was not in danger of escaping by climbing the fence. Ah, and he walked on a leash, too (sometimes, he even tried to bark at visitors he did not like).

Charles checked that everything was fine by focusing briefly on his environment, then he smiled to his lover. “You can release the monsters, Erik. Everything’s fine.”

Erik obeyed and their fluffy family rushed off like a shot, eager to discover their new playground. Charles approached Erik and hugged him; his boyfriend kissed him on the forehead.

“Finally, here we are,” Erik said.

“Yes, love. Two weeks of complete rest,” Charles added.

“Rest, yes,” Erik began. “Not only.” His smile became naughty. Charles smiled the same way: “Indeed. Come here on the lush grass, let's lay a moment.” He pulled Erik to the weeping willow and let himself fall on the fresh grass, pulling Erik down with him.


	12. Anniversary

On this beautiful rainy day, Charles and Erik were celebrating their first anniversary. They both worked (not in the same place) and both had a bad day. Erik's boss was an asshole and refused to let him out earlier, despite his overtime. Into the bargain, he had given Erik even more work. Thanks to Charles and his telepathy, Erik had been able to solve several insolvent problems, but he remained in a very bad mood. Just like Charles.

Six people had tried to leave the bookshop with unpaid books. Since Charles's mind was directly connected to each of the books, they had literally jumped out of the thieves' hands when these idiots wanted to go through the door. Charles then lectured them and spend a few long minutes explaining that (since obviously people could not read the poster on the door) yes, the shop was run by a mutant (“Haven’t you noticed the two blue employees?” Charles finally asked).

Anyway, it was a bad and long day.

“I thought you only had to work until four-thirty today?” Raven asked to Charles.

“I should have, but Erik's boss refused to let him out earlier,” he answered.

“Oh, poor thing. You don’t want to be alone?” She mocked.

“Don’t be sarcastic. Today is our one-year anniversary,” Charles retorted.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“You'll still have a good night with him,” Kurt said.

“Yes, I know,” Charles began. “I’m just a little upset.” His blue friend and employee smiled to him. “I think you belong to each other,” Kurt added. “Really.”

Charles smiled too. “That’s funny,” he said. “I have always dreamed of the great love while being convinced that it would never happen to me.”

“And yet…” His sister said.

“Yeah.”

“It's still not fair,” Raven added. “For once there's a super sexy guy coming in the bookshop, he's for you.” Charles laughed. “I know how lucky I’m. I had a crush on him, and I never thought I'd see him again”

“He promised you he’d come back, though,” Raven said.

“Oh, yes, yes, but we had first seen each other before. The day I adopted the puppies, I got stuck in a traffic jam. The crate opened and the puppies climbed everywhere. I was trying to keep them quiet when I realized that the guy in the car next to me was watching me.”

“And it was Erik?” His sister cannot get over it.

“Yes,” Charles smiled. “I had only seen him for a few seconds, but…”

“But you had a crush,” Raven concluded.

“Voilà.”

She rolled her eyes. Charles laughed and shrugged.

“Do you still remember that your crush’s a professional stalker?” She added. Charles smiled.

“The sexiest.”

“Er, wet, he still looks like a psychopath.” She was looking at something behind Charles’ shoulder. He turned around. “Erik!”

His boyfriend was standing under the rain, completely soaked, with a big shark smile on his face. Charles ran to him. “Come in, love, otherwise you will get sick! What are you doing here two hours earlier than expected?” Erik smiled tenderly and kissed Charles in the middle of the bookshop.

“My boss was fired yesterday,” Erik explained while smiling. “His replacement took office today.”

Finally, Charles's powers awoke. He widened his eyes. “You!” Charles's attitude was so comical that most people laughed. Erik took him in his arms. “Yes, schatz. I was appointed to a new post.”

Immediately, the customers and the employees of the bookshop began to applaud. All smiled and all were happy for them, Charles felt it, he heard their silent congratulations. Tears came to his eyes. “I’m so proud of you, love,” he said to Erik.

Erik smiled and kissed him once again. “I’m really proud to have managed to hide this to you until now. You have no idea.”

Charles laughed, Raven too. “It's like that when you're dating a telepath!”

“Tell me about it,” Erik added.

Charles laughed loudly. _What a beautiful day_, he said privately to Erik.

_And it's far from finished, my dear love_, Erik replied in the same way.

Charles's eyes shone with happiness.


	13. Children

All the dogs (cat included, you will get used to it) were asleep except one. “Charles,” Erik began. “Do you realize that we are acting with our pets as if they were our children?” Charles was giving dog food in a spoon to Jack, the crossbreed corgi, who refused to eat because it did not like the taste. Or, to be more precise, who refused to eat unless if Charles spoon-feed it.

“Why do you say that?” Charles asked.

“Are you kidding me?” Erik laughed. “Just look at you!”

“Obviously I'm kidding,” his boyfriend began, still spoon-feeding Jack. “They are our children, sort of. Aren’t they?”

Erik thought back to their days and nights with the pets. Fuck. He sighed.

“When you'll finish feeding our son, love, you'll come help me with the garden,” Erik said. Charles smiled. He got up and looked down at Jack. “I think you'll make an effort and eat now. I’ll take you another food next Monday,” he said, then the dog wagged its tail and began to eat. “Good boy, you’ll go to bed when you’ve eaten.” Charles and Erik said at the same time.

They looked to each other and smiled. Their pets definitely were their children.

“So,” Erik began. “You come with me, _now._” He said while dragging Charles by the hand into the winter garden.

This room was one of their favourites in the mansion. One of the only where dogs knew they had to be quiet. Charles quickly realized that Erik did not need help. He just wanted to be alone with Charles, like parents finally getting rid of their children after bedtime.

They laid down on the chaise longue. Charles sat down on Erik, a naughty smile on his lips. He unbuttoned Erik's shirt and caressed his skin with his fingertips. “Let’s play, love, now that the children are in bed.”


	14. Proposal

It was an evening as they liked: the weather was mild and the sunset was blazing... The now well-educated dogs walked obediently by their side and they were happy. Once at the beach, at low tide, they let the dogs play wherever they wanted. Suddenly, Hades jumped on the back of Argos and clung to its fur like a cowboy on his rodeo horse with a loud “Meeeooooowww” which diminished with distance. The lovers laughed.

“They are completely mad,” Charles observed. His boyfriend nodded.

“Oh, shit,” Erik began. “They are farther and farther away… Call them.”

Charles let go of Erik's hand and walked a few steps, then put his fingers to his mouth and whistled sharply. The dogs got a little closer and then continued to play. Erik took the opportunity to do what he had prepared for all day. He took a little box out of his pocket and dropped to one knee, waiting for Charles to turn around. When his companion did it, Erik asked him the Question and hold his breath.

Charles looked at him, wide-eyed. He did not breathe either. His eyes were shining, and Erik had never seen a more beautiful smile on his lover’s face. His own smile, at that moment, looked more like a frozen grimace because he was really scared, even if he did not need to be afraid of Charles' answer. But he really needed to breathe, now.

“Oh, Erik,” Charles began, full of happiness. “Yes, of course… Of course! Yes!”

If Erik did not need to breathe, he would have asked “Are you sure?” but he definitely needed to breathe, so he laughed, coughed and gasped, all this at the same time, as Charles hugged him. The telepath’s mind caressed his and helped him to regain his wits. “Take a deep breath, love. It’s all right. I love you,” Charles murmured while kissing him on the forehead.

Erik's breathing slowly calmed down and Charles smiled. “I’m so happy, my love, you’ve no idea how much,” he said. Erik laughed and looked at him. “Really? Not sure you’re right,” he replied. But Charles had that expression he only had when he had a surprise gift for his boyfriend. Erik raised his eyebrows. “What? You—” He paused when he saw Charles put his hand in his pocket.

Charles, almost sitting on Erik's thighs, took a box out of his pocket. It was absolutely identical to the first and contained exactly the same ring. “You beat me to it,” he said, smiling. “By exactly three seconds.” Erik was amazed. He looked alternately at Charles and the rings, weeping for joy. “Yo—You chose a pure metal ring, no frills, for me to shape it…”

“Yes, Erik,” Charles simply replied. “Please.”

“Obviously.”

The two rings came out of their boxes and floated in the air between the two lovers. They melted and merged into a single globe, then parted again. Slowly, expertly, Erik shaped two identical and beautiful engagement rings, while Charles watched him do with eyes filled with love. Finally, Erik gently dropped the rings off in the open palms of Charles and himself. “Ask me again,” Charles said.

“Mein Liebling,” Erik began. “Would you marry me?” This time, he had perfectly controlled himself and smiled from ear to ear.

“Yes, love. I would.” Charles simply answered.

Erik put the ring on his finger and kissed him. It was a brief but extremely sweet kiss. When he opened his eyes, Charles was showing him the other ring.

“And you, my dear love, would you marry me?” He asked.

“Yes.” Erik said.

So, Charles put the second ring on Erik’s finger, then they kissed again and looked at each other. Suddenly overcome with joy, they hugged and kissed while laughing. “I’m so happy, darling,” they said at the same time. As they began to kiss again, something _really_ big moved near them.

They jumped but did not have time to react when a block of five dogs overflowing with love hit them. They found themselves caught under a moving mass full of hairs, paws and tongues that kept barking. Argos and Hades, Jack, Gary and Iron, they were all thinking of the same thing at the same time, like an enthusiastic roar that sounded in Charles's head like a rumble of thunder: “WANNA PLAY TOO!”


	15. Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the delay, I went on vacation c:  
I hope you'll enjoy yourself!

“Erik…” Charles’ voice was a bit weird. Without stopping what he was doing, Erik raised an eyebrow. “What?” He asked.

“Do you realize that you’re laying the table for _seven_ people?” Charles said, crossing his arms on his chest.

“You _know_ Hades thinks he’s one, too,” Erik simply answered. His fiancé smiled and rolled his eyes. “Love,” he said. “They’re not allowed to sit at the table. They’re _dogs_.”

Erik stopped placing the plates and turned to Charles with a big sharky smile. “I know they’re _dogs_, liebling,” he said before giving a sweet kiss to Charles. “It’s their birthday. Exceptionally they can sit with us.”

“I cannot wait to see you explaining to them that it's _just for this time_,” Charles replied with the same sharky smile as Erik.

“You are the telepath, love. You will explain it to them,” Erik retorted. “So,” he began, smiling again. “You cooked a cake especially for them, right?”

Charles nodded. “Yes, I did.”

“Right. And now, please, my dear love,” Erik began with that particular tone that gave Charles the urge to strangle him while kissing him. “Could you fold the towels to give them a lotus shape?”

His lover sighed. Talking with Erik was useless. He obeyed and folded the towels, then took the cake out of the fridge and put it on the table. Charles did not really enjoy eating cakes, but he loved making them and this one was one of the most beautiful he had made. With the sugar paste, he had carved the faces of dogs on it, and he was pretty proud of his art.

Erik and Charles stood for a moment to admire the result. “It’s perfect, honey. Please, call the children,” Erik said while kissing his fiancé on the forehead. Charles grimaced. He was already scared of the moment when Argos… oh, dear God. He sighed and called them.

“Telepathy’s really a good thing,” Erik commented as the merry barking of the dogs got closer.

Charles suddenly had an idea. Something like the beginning of a maniacal laugh escaped from his mouth. “Yeah,” he said. “A _freaking_ good thing.”


	16. Wedding

That's it.

They were finally there.

Their wedding.

Everything was perfect.

The state room was decorated with talent.

The dogs were quiet and well groomed.

Hades was sitting on Argos’ back like a king.

The wedding cake was beautiful and scrumptious.

Everything went as planned.

And the most important thing:

Charles and Erik were magnificent.

They were so happy.

Their wedding rings shone brightly.

Now, they were officially married.

And it was wonderful.

They smiled a lot.

They danced a lot.

They drank a… lot, too.

And they smiled and danced a little more.

They were extremely happy.

Erik ended the evening with a note saying "I'm a professional stalker" stuck on his back.

Charles ended the evening with a note saying "I married the professional stalker" stuck on his.

He was sitting on Erik's thighs.

“Go on honeymoon!” said someone.

They thought it was a really good idea.

The wedding night was sumptuous.

They loved each other so much.

It was wonderful.

And it always will.


	17. Sharing food

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is quite hot but nothing here is really nsfw.

Charles was sitting on Erik's thighs. They were half undressed and it was going to be really hot. The ice cream was dripping from the spoon Charles was giving to Erik. They laughed and Erik shivered while Charles licked the sweet drops on his chest.

“My dear love,” Charles murmured. “You’re so beautiful. I love you so much.”

“I love you, too, liebling,” Erik replied.

He moaned while Charles kissed him deeply. The kiss had a taste of vanilla.

Charles reached out and grabbed the whipped cream. “Want you?” He asked. Erik’s eyes brightened. “Yes,” he said.

His husband kissed him again and dropped a bit of whipped cream on Erik's belly and leaned over to lick it. He caressed Erik’s skin with his fingertips and his tongue, letting him play with his hair.

He opened his eyes to adjust his posture and suddenly froze.

Near his head, really close to him, were two big gray eyes who stared at him without blinking. A drop of sweat ran down Charles' back. He holds his breath.

“Love,” Erik began. “It was so good… Why’ve you stop―” But he did not finish his sentence because he opened his eyes and froze too.

Hades was sitting close to them, dangerously staring at the whipped cream on Erik’s belly. They swallowed.

_Stay calm_, Charles said privately to him. _He’s just waiting_.

_Just waiting?_ Erik retorted. It was like a scream in Charles’ mind. _I’m almost fully naked and this beast is near us. This beast with his claws of hell!_

Charles swallowed again. He knew enough about Hades that he would not have time to throw the whipped cream or the ice cream away to make a diversion.

“One week,” Erik suddenly muttered. “It's been _one week_ since you’re preventing us from fucking! That’s _enough_.”

Hades was about to put its paw on Erik’s belly when he was caught by what looked like a harness but was made of liquid metal. The thing took him away from the lovers and he let out a “Meeeeeoooow” really upset.

“Stay away, you demon!” Erik said. And Hades disappeared behind the door.

Charles laughed out loud. He could barely breathe. Until he catches his husband's eye, then he gulped. Erik was staring at him without blinking or laughing. He had his sharky smile. He slowly took the whipped cream and drew a suggestive arrow on his lower abdomen. Charles could not take his eyes off what Erik was doing.

“Where were we, liebling?” Erik asked naughtily.


	18. Music

“I don’t know how you do to concentrate with this noise!” Erik had to scream to be heard by Charles who asked anyway: “What?”

The bass was so strong that the whole room vibrated. The dogs were far away, even Iron (yet he was deaf). Erik sighed. There was one thing he could not understand about his husband: Charles loved to put metal music as background when he was thinking. Nothing abnormal in it, except that the volume was pushed to the max. Erik lowered the volume. “Better,” he said.

Charles did not even lift his head. “Don’t like Rammstein, love?”

“Not at two hundred decibels,” Erik retorted. He kissed him on the forehead. “How could you even think with _Rein Raus_ in your ears?” He asked.

“I really like the rhythm,” Charles replied. Erik raised an eyebrow. “At two hundred decibels?” He said.

“_Yes_.”

Erik gave up. Charles was even more stubborn than him. He went back to the stereo and changed the CD. After a few seconds, the first notes of Ottorino Respighi's _Pines of Rome_ resounded in the office. Charles smiled and turned to Erik. “_Love_. I had to _work_.”

Erik had his delicious sharky smile. “You’ve worked enough.” His pianist hands massaged Charles' strained shoulders. “You need to relax. Come and lie down, liebling, let me take care of you…”

He knew Charles could not resist. He knew Charles loved his massages so much. He knew he had already won.

Charles pulled off his shirt and obeyed.

Erik was still smiling.

There would be a time for Rammstein's rhythm.

For now, it was time for the symphony and Charles’ sensations would explode like the chorus of instruments.


	19. Babysitting

“But Raven, jus―”

“No! Charles, I said ‘no’,” Raven retorted.

“It’s only for a few hours!” Charles implored. “You just have to keep an eye on them.”

“I remember the last time I kept an eye on them. It’s very clear in my mind. And the answer is still _no_,” she said. “Don’t even think about brainwashing me.” Her brother pouted. “I didn’t mean to do that,” he murmured.

“Your ‘few hours’ are actually _half a day_, you're aware of that, yes?” She added.

“It's not like we're asking you that often,” Charles retorted. “And I remind you that I helped you out last week for your car,” he added, completely out of arguments. She widened her eyes.

“Ah! So I owe you a service now?!”

“Obviously. We’re sibling.”

“Charles…” She had her hands on her hips. Charles pouted. “You’ve no valid argument,” she said.

Her brother sighed. “Would you, my beloved sister,” he began, “keep the monsters with you half a day so that my husband and I could go out together?” His eyes were full of hope. “Please,” he added to be sure. Raven rolled her eyes.

“And what do I get as compensation?” She asked.

“My eternal gratitude?” Charles tried.

“More concretely,” she simply said.

“Okay, you can take the Bentley for your date.” He knew he was going to regret it, but he trusted Erik to fix the possible damages. His sister’s smile was too bright to be honest.

“It's always a pleasure to do business with you, Charles.” She was literally jubilant.

_I'm fed up with being had by this bullshit metamorph_, Charles privately said to Erik. He felt him smile even though he could not see him. _We’ll take revenge, darling_, Erik replied. _I’ve an idea_.


	20. Cooking

“And you, how was your first intimate dinner at home?”

When they heard this question, Erik and Charles froze.

**Flashback**

Erik never had cooked. His adorable mother, Edie, was divinely good at cooking and she had always made sure he had good home-cooked meals to bring home. And when he did not have Edie's food, he ordered some.

Only, the first time he invited Charles home, he wanted to do it well. He did not want to do anything too sophisticated, but he wanted to cook something himself to please Charles. So, he chooses spaghetti bolognese: simple, tasty and fast to do. Nothing could go wrong with spaghetti bolognese.

He sent a message to his mother for last-minute advice. “Put some water to heat in a saucepan, half filled. Add salt to the water before boiling: pour and count to five,” she answered.

Nothing complicated, Erik thought. Then he did it.

While pouring the salt, he thought that it was a lot of salt, but he did it anyway: after all, his mother knew how to cook, she knew these things better than him.

He scrupulously followed the instructions for cooking pasta and tomato sauce, but he did not take the time to taste it. He did not want to make Charles wait.

Charles, for his part, had quietly waited for Erik to serve him. When Erik did it, the dish was really appetizing. When he realized that Erik was waiting for him to taste and give his opinion, Charles took a first bite. At this moment, he were having a hard time not to retch or cough. He tried to breathe deeply and chewed, then swallowed. It was like eating a block of salt. Trying not to have tears in his eyes, he said: “It’s good, Erik. Really tasty.”

Erik's face lit up immediately and Charles regretted lying to him. “You really think it is?” He asked. Charles felt extremely bad. “Yes, really,” he said yet. Visibly relieved, Erik also tasted and froze. Charles promptly heard his thoughts: _oh, fuck! It's disgusting!_ The telepath pouted. Erik beautiful eyes stared intensely at him.

“It’s disgusting, isn’t it?” Erik asked.

“I’m sorry, Erik, really,” Charles said. He felt in his own flesh how Erik was disappointed, and he did not want him to feel miserable. He reached out and caressed Erik's hand.

“These are things that happen, darling. It doesn’t matter,” he added. The light came back on Erik’s face: Charles had never used the word ‘darling’ before. Well, Erik knew it was a date, but he still did not understand that Charles was _already_ his. Until now.

“This is the first time I cook,” Erik confessed. “I put too much salt.”

His heart missed a beat when Charles smiled. “The first time I cooked, I burned the water,” he said. “You’re not so bad at it.” Erik burst into a nervous laugh that, helped by Charles's, turned into a happy laugh. “Really?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Charles said while laughing. “It was terrible. You’ve no idea how much. My sister still makes fun of me with that today. Just ask her.”

“Oh God,” Erik said. He got his breath back and winced. “Okay… what about… ordering pizza?”

Charles smiled tenderly. “It’ll be perfect.”

“Great,” Erik added. He was drowning in Charles’ blue eyes. So, Charles moved and kissed him. It was only the third time they kissed each other, and it was the first that was so deep and passionate. It left them short-winded and with a salty taste on the tongue.

Charles should have just dined at Erik's and left.

But Charles never left.


	21. Dancing

Charles loved to dance, but he had never had a very elegant style. He did it instinctively. To flirt, or just to have fun. Then he married Erik, who was gracious and elegant…

For their wedding, they had to dance. And Erik had taught Charles to perform the waltzes of Vienna and languid slow dances. Their duo had been extraordinary.

Since then, they often danced together and Erik taught Charles to rock properly, and Charles became rather talented. But what he preferred was the tango. Yes, dancing a tango with Erik was one of the best pleasures of the world, according to Charles.

That's why they were whirling through the library, jumping from time to time over the sleeping dogs (which did not let themselves be disturbed by anything; even Hades was lying on his back, all four paws stretched towards the ceiling).

The music resonated in the room; their soles flapped on the floor.

Oh, I forgot to mention that they were coming back from Scotland and that Charles was wearing a kilt. And he wore nothing underneath.

When the music stopped and Erik kissed Charles, a rose in his mouth, the dogs started barking loudly. Between two barking, the lovers heard applause. They turned to the window and widened their eyes.

“Why are they _already_ here?” Charles mumbled between his clenched teeth. “They were not supposed to arrive until seven o'clock!” At the same time, the clock struck seven.

“Oh,” Erik observed.

“Yeah,” Charles added.

“You wear no underwear,” Erik said.

“I know,” Charles replied.

“They smile oddly,” Erik noticed.

“They saw _too much_,” Charles confirmed.

“Brainwash,” Erik concluded.

“Yes. Double dose.”

They smiled, waving innocently.


	22. Tradition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you want to listen to the music that goes with this chapter: [This is Halloween](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU6iP0WLsU8).

“Oh, Erik please! It's going to be awesome!”

Erik sighed. Charles had already decorated the mansion and his bookshop (which was absolutely stunning), but… cars… really?

“Charles, you don’t need to… oh gosh.”

Charles had made a new badge for the top of radiator grille of the Bentley, something special Halloween. “Isn't she beautiful like that?” He asked.

“Charles,” Erik began. But he did not continue his sentence. Charles’ eyes were too blue, his expression too bright and Erik’s heart too melted. “Yes, love, really beautiful,” he said instead. Charles smiled.

“You know, I think it'd be great, like really great, if we'd put ripped black curtains inside. Ah, and a skeleton on the back seat,” he said. Erik shook his head but smiled. “And you'd put a snake somewhere,” he suggested.

“Oh, yes,” Charles’ mind had started on the “incredible decoration” mode and nothing could stop it. “A big snake. Maybe a cobra.”

Erik did not say anything, he watched him get busy. The 1920s’ Bentley was transforming into a real Car of Hell, full of tips, teeth (teeth? Oh God…), bones and, yes, giant snake. Erik smiled skarkly: “It's a bit too much, isn't it?” He asked.

“Obviously,” Charles retorted. “It's Halloween.”

Erik gave up and looked inside. Charles had not installed the skeleton yet, so he opened the door and dragged his husband into the car. “Erik!” Charles said, laughing. “Shhhh, liebling,” Erik replied. “I think we’d try the ‘pumpkin’ atmosphere,” he added.

Charles raised an eyebrow. “The orange lights and smoke are made to scare,” he explained, amused. “Not to give a particular atmosphere to an eventual sex act.”

“You can erase the ‘eventual’,” Erik replied. “Come here.”

Charles laughed and let Erik kiss him before turning on the music and light effects.

“Oh, music?” Erik noticed while undressing Charles.

“You don’t like it?” Charles asked while kissing him on the neck.

Erik allowed himself a few seconds of thought. Charles shrugged. “It’s _This is Halloween_,” he clarified obligingly. Erik rolled his eyes.

“I know, darling,” he said. He kissed his husband tenderly, and added: “And, after some consideration, it's a very good choice. We never made love with a Marilyn Manson’s song in the background,” he noticed. “Let’s do it.”


	23. Stargazing

“You know what I love, at the beginning of autumn?” Charles asked.

Erik kissed him tenderly before asking: “What?”

“Laying down with you in the grass of the garden for stargazing,” his husband replied.

“Yes,” Erik began, smiling. “It’s―Ah! Dogs! Sit and be quiet! Ah, thanks love.”

“I did nothing,” Charles said. “They’re obedient now.”

“They never obey me,” Erik retorted, not convinced.

But the dogs laid down against them in the grass. After a few minutes, Jack and Hades began to snore. The lovers smiled while stroking their fluffy children.

“Look, liebling! A shooting star!”

Charles smiled and kissed Erik in the neck, caressing his chest with his hand. “I saw,” he began. “This is wonderful.”

“Yes.”

They were silent for a few moments, simply enjoying the presence of each other. They liked to say what they thought when they thought it. It was something they had got used to doing. Because Charles was a telepath. Because they were in love. So, Erik said: “I’m so glad I married you, Charles. I love you so much.”

Charles smiled and kissed his beloved husband. It was a sweet and tender kiss, filled with the love Charles felt for Erik.

“Me too, my dear love,” he replied. “I love you with all my heart. With all my soul.”

They smiled at each other and kissed again, deeply and passionately. Above them, the stars shone like diamonds and shooting stars crossed the firmament like so many wonderful flashes.

The family was full of happiness.

Autumn will be beautiful.


	24. Flowers

Charles rarely came looking for Erik at his job, mainly because Erik was finishing earlier than him. Today, Charles let his sister close the bookshop, then he went to buy a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Now, he was standing in front of the entrance of Erik's job.

Erik was the head of a company now; he had the respect of his employees and Charles could come to see him here without fear of homophobic reactions. He knew he had a good idea when his husband's face lit up while seeing him. Erik ran to him and kissed him passionately.

“Liebling, you’re here!”

Charles smiled against Erik’s mouth. “Yes, my love. What would you say about a restaurant outing?” Then he offered him the flowers and Erik’s smile widened.

“Thank you, darling. They are beautiful.”

They kissed again, then Erik put an arm around Charles' shoulders. “That’s a good idea,” he added. “Where’re we going?”

“What about an Italian?” Charles asked, slipping a hand into the back pocket of Erik's jeans.

“Great choice,” his husband said. “_Magnifico_.”

Charles' laugh resonated in the street. “_Seguimi, amore mio. Sarà delizioso_,” he promised.


	25. Chess

Strip-poker was not fun enough. Charles and Erik preferred to play strip-chess.

Sometimes Charles won, but most of the time he lost. And he was losing with incredible talent.

He was extraordinarily good at slowly getting naked and Erik was completely in awe of him.

What grace he had. How naughty he was.

Erik was so hypnotized that he only won because Charles wanted it.

Charles enjoyed Erik's moans of desire.

But what he loved most was when Erik said “Checkmate”.

He got up then to sit on his husband's thighs and kiss him passionately.

“You won, darling. You know what to do,” Charles murmured while smiling.


	26. Hug

It was a long and hard day. In the morning, ten minutes from the lunch break, a kid decided to take out all the books from the two shelves at the bottom on the child section. His mother had watched him do it without intervening, which really had irritated Charles.

On top of that, his sandwich was bad. It will teach him to try the food trucks that had just opened.

Ah and in the afternoon, a mutant who spontaneously turned into something big with a carapace had broken the glass door.

Anyway, everything was wrong today.

Somebody hit Charles in the back. He groaned, but the other immediately wrapped his protective arms around him. The tender and familiar touch instantly made him smile and relax.

“Erik,” he murmured, caressing his husband's forearms.

“Hello, darling,” Erik replied. “Had a good day?”

“Absolutely not,” Charles replied.

He closed his eyes and surrendered himself to Erik's care. They hugged a long time in the middle of the bookshop. Finally, Charles said: “Thanks love, I feel much better.” He turned to Erik and kissed him briefly.

“Can I take a look at the latest novelties until you finish?” Erik asked innocently.

Charles smiled and winked at him. He muffled a laugh, remembering Erik courting him by buying books at his bookshop. “Do it, my love,” he replied. “Ask me for advice if you need.”

The smile that illuminated Erik's face melted Charles's heart. “Thank you, Charles,” Erik said as he did when he courted him. “That’s really kind of you.”

And Charles smiled at Erik as he always had.

And Erik fell in love with him again.


	27. Massage

Erik was lying on his stomach, shirtless and exhausted. His week was really long, and Charles tried hard to make his evening pleasant. He had prepared the massage oils and put on some relaxing music. He smiled when he saw that Hades was massaging Iron with his front legs (Iron who obviously looked delighted). For a moment, he imagined Erik with the same expression and muffled a giggle.

“Whtsun?” Erik muttered.

“Uh?”

“What’s fun?” Erik repeated, articulating better.

Charles had an oddly smile. “Nothin’,” he said. “Iron’s happy.”

Erik looked down to the dog, raised an eyebrow and dropped his head on the cushion. Charles smiled. He caressed Erik’s forehead and played with his hair. “Relax, my love.”

He sat astride Erik and took the massage oil. Slowly, he began to massage him, making gentle movements.

His husband moaned softly, he loved Charles’ caresses a lot, it always made him feel good. He surrendered to the tender massage of his lover, lulled by the sweet scents of incense and by the harp.

Charles kissed him on the head and on the shoulder, he slipped his hands under Erik’s belly and unbuckled the belt and opened the pants. Then he gently pulled on the fabric to slide the pants, revealing round buttocks and gorgeous legs. Charles kissed the skin everywhere he could while continuing his massage.

Erik's skin shone because of the oil. Charles’ fingers were following the muscles' contours with an incredible talent. Erik was smiling; he was falling asleep.


	28. Help

“Raven?” Charles called. “Erik, have you seen my sister?” He asked his husband.

“Nope,” Erik answered. “Thought she was with you.”

Charles sighed. It had been three times that he went around the mansion, where could his sister be? He returned to the veranda and looked down at the dogs. To look closely, they were lying oddly. Suddenly, Charles muffled a scream: an arm poked out under Argos.

_All_ the dogs were lying on Raven’s back. At first worried, Charles ended up bursting out laughing.

“Help me, you idiot!” Raved shouted.

“Don’t think I can,” Charles muttered when he managed to breathe. The dogs seemed really happy with themselves. “I’d really feel very bad about disturbing them,” he added before laughing again.

“You traitor! Get me out of here instead of laughing!”

Charles considered the thing for a moment, then he said: “Argos, get up, you’ll be a good boy. Jack, don’t lick my sister’s face, please. Iron, don’t sit on her head, oh shit, sorry, I forgot you’re deaf. No, Hades, don’t do that. Gary, please, my dear boy, don't chew on her shoes.”

But nothing happened.

“See?” He said. “They don’t care.”

“I’ll kill you,” she promised.

“Sure,” he said, sitting next to her. “But let me enjoy it before.”

Standing in the doorway, Erik held back his laugh. These two really had a screw loose.


	29. Pride

When they had started dating, Charles had been careful that they did not look too much like a couple because he was afraid. He was afraid Erik would be rejected by his friends or be blamed for dating a man. He did not care about himself, but he was worried about Erik.

Today, things were different.

They were married and they were proud of it. They held hands while walking down the street. They walked arm in arm. They kissed to greet each other, even in front of their colleagues, even in front of strangers.

They were in love and they were proud of it.

They were bisexuals and they were proud of it.

It had taken some time for Erik to understand that he had the right to be himself, but fortunately he had met the man of his life. Thanks to Charles, Erik understood everything. Today, when somebody asked him if he was married, he always responded with pride: “Yes, I'm. My husband's just over there”.

He had never been happier than today. Charles neither.

Together.

With a fluffy family.

Surrounded by love.

Proud to be themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be proud of who you are ♡


	30. Family

A husband, five fluffy children, an adorable mother-in-law, and a sister: that was Charles' definition of a family.

Seeing them all together filled him with joy.

He laughed with Edie about Hades, the cat who thought he was a dog and lied down like them.

He was hugging his husband.

He stroked dogs’ fur.

He was bickering with his sister.

Yes, that was his definition of happiness.

Erik’s was not different.

He felt extremely lucky, with his wonderful mother, his funny sister-in-law, his mad dogs and his marvellous husband.

He loved his family so much.

They were made for each other.


	31. Halloween

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe it's already over... This October was a wonderful journey with you all!  
Thank you so much for all the comments and kudos 😄  
Here's the last one, my dear fellows. Happy Halloween and see you soon!

The mansion was so out of the city that Charles never had a children's visit for Halloween. He never celebrated it, by the way, until he became a librarian and discovered that he loved decorating the bookshop and making special areas dedicated to some horrific subjects. This year he made a Stephen King zone with a red Plymouth Fury radiator grille as a shelf, made by Erik. Great collaboration, as they said.

In fact, it was when he became a librarian that he started decorating at home for Halloween, and then he realized that the mansion lent itself particularly well to it. But he only decorated the library, the kitchen and the living room where he was going the most.

Since he was living with Erik, he enjoyed that kind of thing a lot more. Decorating the house had become a pleasant game, a good time to spend together, and a good opportunity to laugh about the dogs.

As for the Halloween party, Charles had discovered that he loved it. Partying with their friends was fun, but his favourite thing was to spend Halloween at home with Erik and the dogs. Dogs who were disguised with costumes specially made for them. Hades was even more scary than usual with its stuck fur and the saw that he had in its body (the worst thing about it was that he looked really proud of being terrifying. The other dogs gone back when he came).

Erik and Charles disguised themselves too, for fun.

Sometimes (often) they ended up making love, half dressed, titillated by the role they played.

They had been vampires, werewolves, Frankenstein's monster. They had been Batman and Joker. They have always been themselves.

They loved each other like this.

Halloween was just another opportunity to prove it. Another opportunity to be happy.

This night, Erik and Charles were dancing in the veranda.

The pumpkins shone in the dark.

The music resonated under the glass ceiling.

Erik and Charles were overwhelmingly happy.

They kissed on the moonlight and smiled.

What a wonderful night.


End file.
